Headley rolls in to student 40-yard tryout, steals show

Colwyn Headley knew he was going to be running late today so he planned ahead.

Intrigued by the prospect of taking part in the Ohio State football team’s challenge to find the fastest person from the student body to challenge one of the faster Buckeyes – perhaps running back Dontre Wilson -- during the spring game April 12, Headley entered. But he let program assistant and event organizer Fernando Lovo know by email he was going to be late to the afternoon competition in the Woody Hayes Athletic Center because of an academic commitment.

It turned out to be sort of a Superman moment for those watching. Because while the other 40, including one female, who had shown up were just starting to run their 40s, Headley walked in with a poster under his arm, still in his heavy coat and dress clothes. Seconds later he was in running tights, having worn them under his regular clothes.

Now, he didn’t proceed to blow everyone else away with his two 40-yarders, his best being a 4.60-second pass, but he wound up in the upper echelon of times that included at least one 4.45, according to Lovo. Headley did steal the show, though, as he had indicated he would in that email to Lovo earlier in the day.

“Sure enough he showed up. I didn’t know he was going to be in a suit, with his project in his hand. But he was quick. We’ll see him in the next round.”

Headley hinted afterward that with a proper warmup he probably could have run faster.

“If I had a little more time, I don’t know,” he said. “I’m not a sprinter, so.”

A member of the OSU running club, he looked the part. He saw the posting for the first-ever OSU football challenge on the club’s website.

“I thought I’d come out and represent,” Headley said.

At 23, he is a senior majoring in microbiology. He’s originally from British Guyana in South America, “but I live in Wooster (Ohio) now. Shout out, Woo-Town.”

As for that poster he was toting, he pulled it out of the tube for display. It was a project he had done with two other students. This was the title at the top: “Nitrone Spin Traps Prevent Hyperglycemia-Induced Endothelial Dysfunction in Bovine Aortic Endothelial Cells”.

It was no surprise to learn that his future intentions are to become a medical doctor or researcher. But for the moment, he was the toast of the tryout, and will be invited back with about 20 others to the semifinal phase on April 5 during the football team’s third annual student appreciation day under coach Urban Meyer, with the idea of qualifying along with four or five others for that spring game showdown.

“There’s some seriously fast times here, these kids were unbelievable,” Lovo said. “And not only were they fast, but you could tell they were used to running, because running a 40 is not an easy thing. You have to learn to run a 40, and some of these people were naturals out here.”

And if on spring game day Wilson is tabbed to represent the team, “Of course I will be up for it,” said Wilson, a track star back in his high school days in DeSoto, Texas, who along with several other players watched the student competition today.

Wilson’s best 40 is 4.33 seconds, he said, though he added, “I don’t know if I’ll run that (fast) after the spring game and playing and stuff, but they’re going to have to come on. It’s not going to be easy. It’s going to be fun.”

Headley made no bold predictions either, especially from the prospect of racing Wilson.

“Dontre is probably like a world class sprinter,” Headley said. “I’m just a poser, if anything. We’ll just have to see what it comes down to.”